he emerged from a meeting in Gledsmuir. He
had now enjoyed ten days of it, and he was heartily tired. His throat
was sore with much speaking, his mind was barren with thinking on the
unthinkable, and his spirits were dashed with a bitter sense of
futility. He had honestly done his best. So far his conscience was
clear; but as he reviewed the past in detail, his best seemed a very
shoddy compromise. It was comfort to see the rugged face of Wratislaw
again, though his greeting was tempered by mistrust. The great man had
refused to speak for him and left him to fight his own battles;
moreover, he feared the judgment of the old warrior on his conduct of
the fight. He was acutely conscious of the joints in his armour, but he
had hoped to have decently cloaked them from others. When he heard the
first words, "Well, Lewie, my son, you have been making a mess of it,"
his heart sank.

"I am sorry," he said. "But how?"

"How? Why, my dear chap, you have no grip. You have let the thing get
out of hand. I heard your speech to-night. It was excellent, very
clever, a beautiful piece of work, but worse than useless for your
purpose. You forget the sort of man you are fighting. Oh, I have been
following the business carefully, and I felt bound to come down to keep
you in order. To begin with, you have left your own supporters in the
place in a nice state of doubt."

"How?"

"Why, because you have given them nothing to catch hold of. They
expected the ordinary Conservative confession of faith--a rosy sketch of
foreign affairs, and a little gentle Socialism, and the old rhetoric
about Church and State. Instead, they are put off with epigrams and
excellent stories, and a few speculations as to the metaphysical basis
of politics. Believe me, Lewie, it is only the very general liking for
your unworthy self which keeps them from going over in a body to
Stocks." And Wratislaw lit a cigar and puffed furiously.

"Then you would have me deliver the usual insincere platitudes?" said
Lewis dismally.

"I would have you do nothing of the kind. I thought you understood my
point of view. A man like Stocks speaks his platitudes with vehemence
because he believes in them whole-heartedly. You have also your
platitudes to get through with, not because you would stake your soul on
your belief in them, but because they are as near as possible the
inaccurate popular statement of your views, which is all that your
constituents would understand, and yo